• Registered users are encouraged to enable MFA/2FA to add an aditional layer of security to their account. More information can be found here: https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/collection/top-tips-for-staying-secure-online/activate-2-step-verification-on-your-email

FK8 SportContact 6 Tread Wear

Messages
496
Was having a conversation about this today on another forum and has been quite a sobering thought for me.
My car has currently covered just under 2300 miles in 6 and a half months.
My front tread depth is down to 5.5mm (rears are 6.5mm). Taking 7.5mm as the starting point this means my tyres have lost a whole 2mm, and if everything remains constant at around 13 months and 4600 miles my front tyres will be down to 3.5mm......then a further 6 months will be illegal at less than 7000 miles. :eek:
This type of tyre wear is completely unheard of for me because on the whole I drive fairly gently....most likely more gently than the majority here. For me this car is all about the looks with performance second....there is nothing else this side of a supercar that even comes close to it in the looks department IMO.
My previous Mk3 Focus ST with standard fit 19" Michelin Pilot Sport 3 tyres had just under 4mm of front tread left at 13200 miles, so that should give an idea of how I drive.
Obviously the Continental tyres are super sticky, but I reckon with this type of wear they are overkill for road use and a slightly less sticky tyre that gives longer life would be a better choice.
This would probably have meant the FK8 not achieving the 'ring record though, which seems to be most important.
The last time I had to buy tyres for any of my cars was back in 2009....but looks like I am going to have an expensive decision to make in the next 7-10 months.
 
My PS4's have worn down pretty quickly but that's the trade off you get having a tyre with more grip.

You can extend the life of the fronts by switching them over to the rear, then you'll probably get two years out of all four. Which let's be honest, is a long time.
 
Conti's wear at 1mm per 1000 miles on average. I did a track day last year and took 4mm off them in one day. They are very soft and wear quickly.

I will be jumping to MPS4S again when they are worn out. They wear much better and IMO are the best tyre on the market for daily road use.
 
My car is on its 5th set of front rubber and 3rd set of rear rubber on my FK2.

Currently, I downgraded to Goodyear Eagle F1's as i was/am going through a period of munching motorway miles so i've traded some grip for some longevity and I'm currently estimating i'll get 2000 miles more than the Conti's did.

The difference in grip, turn in, sidewall floppiness is noticeable with the Goodyears. They are not as good.

Would i do it again? Trade grip for longevity. No, i wouldn't.
 
You can extend the life of the fronts by switching them over to the rear, then you'll probably get two years out of all four. Which let's be honest, is a long time.
I have calculated that if I was to swap them over at a year old, all tyres would be down to 1.5mm at 2 years. This is assuming my very low mileage stays the same.
So this means I wouldn't even get 2 years if I ran them down to the legal minimum....which I wouldn't because that is not advisable on any car.
I don't think 2 years from 4 tyres is good at all, but one might argue what do you expect from a high performance car.
What is getting me is that even with my gentle driving style I am still getting terrible wear. :eek:
 
is your wear consistent across the tyre. I found the inside edges of my front tyres were wearing a lot faster than the middle/outer edges. problem for me was tracking was out (possibly set incorrectly at the factory) and swapped front/rear before they got too low to be illegal.

I too will be swapping to MPS4 when these continentals are needing changing.
 
This is an expensive car to buy and run with tyres, disks, pads...

I kinda ignored all these when I was doing my man maths but its worth it.
 
is your wear consistent across the tyre. I found the inside edges of my front tyres were wearing a lot faster than the middle/outer edges. problem for me was tracking was out (possibly set incorrectly at the factory) and swapped front/rear before they got too low to be illegal.

I too will be swapping to MPS4 when these continentals are needing changing.

The inside edges become terrible on the contis, just under 4000 I seen, cracking grip but not really a daily unless you like spending.

@Ron I thought mine looked ok and had an even wear, it wasn't until the fitter removed them and showed me the inside, chewed and pitted, being a new released tyre it was the first set he had seen and he couldn't believe it when I told him my mileage
 
@Ron I thought mine looked ok and had an even wear, it wasn't until the fitter removed them and showed me the inside, chewed and pitted, being a new released tyre it was the first set he had seen and he couldn't believe it when I told him my mileage
Now that you've said that I will need to inspect closer.
What mileage did you get from yours?
At this rate I am glad I am doing a low annual mileage, because if I was doing the national average this car would be going through 2 sets of tyres per year. :eek:
 
Just under 4000,
Reason I changed was my because my back end nearly went on me on a roundabout, which confused me as it was the fronts that were chewed up.
I probably hit some diesel but if it wasn't for that incident I would have carried on running on dodgy fronts.

Either on here or ctro someone went through 3 sets
 
Funds are not short....I just don't like throwing money away needlessly. ;)
I like to get value for money, but these tyres are certainly not doing that for me.

Ron,being serious,I like you will be a low mileage driver and nowadays,in my dotage, a fairly steady one.

When my tyres wear out I might well look for something more midrange to replace them,but one still rated high for wet grip and with low noise.
I think what we want and what the track day boys want are different things,for instance I'm sure you can easily destroy Uniroyal Rainsports on a hot,dry track but they would be OK as a road tyre for us.
(However,I don't think these and,another tyre that comes to mind,GY assy 3 are available in the right size.)

TBH I don't know what I'll get in a couple of years,while the car is still in warranty,I may well just stay with the original Contis,as you say,the money is not really a factor when you pay over £30k for the car.
 
I have calculated that if I was to swap them over at a year old, all tyres would be down to 1.5mm at 2 years. This is assuming my very low mileage stays the same.
So this means I wouldn't even get 2 years if I ran them down to the legal minimum....which I wouldn't because that is not advisable on any car.
I don't think 2 years from 4 tyres is good at all, but one might argue what do you expect from a high performance car.
What is getting me is that even with my gentle driving style I am still getting terrible wear. :eek:
Personally I think two years is quite good but each to their own on that one. Don't forget that tyres have an expiry date as well.
 
Personally I think two years is quite good but each to their own on that one.
Don't forget that tyres have an expiry date as well.
It depends on what mileage they are doing. Other factors obviously come into play but we will keep it simple here. :)
Yes they do but it is far longer than 2 years.....more like 5 years.
 
Back
Top